Ajay Banga – president, World BankThe World Bank’s board of governors has elected former Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga as its new president for a five-year term beginning in June. Mr Banga was nominated for the position by US president Joe Biden in February as the sole candidate to succeed the outgoing World Bank head David Malpass, who recently announced his resignation after facing criticism over his stance on climate change. Mr Banga joins the World Bank from private equity firm General Atlantic, where he currently serves as vice-chairman. Prior to that, he spent more than a decade at Mastercard as its president and CEO. He also worked at Citi from 1996 to 2009, climbing the corporate ladder to eventually become CEO of its Asia-Pacific business. Congratulating Mr Banga on his “resounding approval” by the World Bank’s board of governors, Mr Biden said in a press statement: “Ajay Banga will be a transformative leader, bringing expertise, experience and innovation to the position of World Bank president. “And together with World Bank leadership and shareholders, he will help steer the institution as it evolves and expands to address global challenges that directly affect its core mission of poverty reduction – including climate change.”
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